5 1/2 Things Recruiters Should Never Try at a User Group Meeting

For those of us in recruiting who have gotten used to finding talent from behind a computer screen and only meeting candidates live under the carefully controlled social conditions of a personal interview, the thought of being sent out into the "wild" to hunt for Information Technology professionals can seem terrifying.

So it isn't surprising that in the process of polishing up our business cards and intrepidly hurtling ourselves into the void errors are made. Errors in judgement. Errors in approach. Don't let these things happen to you:

1. You arrive at the user group early, pass out your business cards to everyone there, leave a stack of them on the table, and leave before the meeting starts. First of all, if you've never been to the meeting before, you have no business dropping your recruiting detritus on any table, let alone foisting a card on people who may actually be in a position to like you if you talk to them. Yes, you should bring business cards with you, and perhaps even a handout or glossy with information about your current job openings. But until you have an idea what the group is about, until you have gotten permission from the meeting organizers to leave behind some items, be a good kid, sit down, and just listen, 'kay?

2. You attend the entire meeting but clearly ignore the speaker. Even worse, you look bored and check your Blackberry for e-mails the whole time. Nothing sends a clearer message that you are a recruiter and do not view the participants at the event as anything other than a potential paycheck for you than taking this approach. Yes, you are there. That's something. And maybe you are not doing anything to upset the proceedings. But by not showing any active interest in the topic or presenter, you are demonstrating that you are not truly engaged in the only good reason for being there... to learn something. I have spoken to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of technology professionals during my career and it has been common for them to comment to me how most IT recruiters don't have the faintest clue about the technologies they recruit for. Could the average IT recruiter stand to learn a few things about technology? Heck, yes. And while the topics may become incomprehensible at some point, I have found it fascinating even then to watch how participants in the room interact, who asks the best questions, and what the group consensus is on the tech topic at hand. Isn't that what we are there for? ... finding talented people to hire?

3. While at a small user group gathering, the organizer suggests that everyone stand up and identify him/herself. Dodgily, you try to pass yourself off as a technical professional instead of as a recruiter. I am not a fan of "rusing." I do not think it ever has value in a profession in which engendering trust in your ethics and the hiring process is a desired outcome. Just don't.

4. You call up a meeting organizer and get the go ahead to spring for pizza for the group in exchange for a short commercial. You get up in front of the group, disheveled, and proceed to ramble for 20 minutes about how candidates need to have skills X, Y, and blah-blah-blah for a job with your company/client. If you've gone to the trouble to sponsor an event, the least you can do is present a neat appearance and prepare a bit. And by preparation, I also mean you need to recognize that the group is not there to suffer your comments for long. They came for the actual content the evening promises. Finally, technology professionals are people, not candidates. Get out of your industry jargon zone and think about what will appeal to your audience... not what you require of them, but what your organization can offer in terms of interesting work, career growth, and cool people.

5. The meeting organizers pass around a list of participants at the event. You falsify your information and copy the list of participants. Again, falsification does not help your cause. And copying a list? That's just tacky. Now I am not going to sit on a high horse and say that I would not look at a list and maybe even make a mental note about someone or several someones I'd like to contact, but think about how you are undercutting the trust and integrity of a user group by harvesting that list of names. The participants in user groups are giving up personal time to learn something. But if they feel like their information is being grabbed wholesale by another attendee, that group either won't last long or you're forcing the organizers to ban recruiters from the room.

And the last 1/2 item? ...

1/2. You show up once at the meeting and never appear again. It's definitely a great idea to reach out to the user community, get your name out, get word out about your great company/client. If, however, you hope to do an effective job of getting that word out, you cannot hope that a hit-and-run approach is going to yield anything more than minimal returns.

It is only by living with that group, month-in, month-out, regularly identifying yourself, not pushing but offering your particular expertise with the job market, with resume writing, with making difficult career decisions, and by demonstrating your commitment to supporting it over the long haul that you will get what you--and your company--want to get out of your participation. Great hires for your organization.

(Thank you to mag3737 for noncommercial use of photo under Creative Commons with attribution!)